WASHINGTON — From roundtable discussions to protests and prayers to candid talks with law enforcement officials, American Jewish communities are joining in the debate about community policing in the wake of several high-profile deaths of unarmed black men while in police custody. Officials were short on specifics, but several said that protests in Baltimore following… Read More

One Jewish midshipman was killed and a the CEO of Philadelphia tech company is missing after an Amtrak train derailed Tuesday night. Midshipman Justin Zesmer, from Far Rockaway, N.Y., was one of the seven people killed when Amtrak Northwest Regional train 188 derailed, according to reports. Another 200 were injured. Rachel Jacobs, the CEO of… Read More

Children wearing crowns decorated with glitter rode their bicycles and scooters into the courtyard of their school on Park Heights Avenue and dashed inside for an icy treat and further Lag B’Omer celebrations. Whether children would be seen at all in the large building that was once the home of Beth Jacob Congregation, a pillar… Read More

New York-based kosher grocer Seasons is preparing to open its first store outside of its home state. Contractors are at work demolishing the interior of the building at 1628 Reisterstown Road in Pikesville, the former site of an Office Depot. Seasons officials have not said when the store will open. It will join four others… Read More

Attorney Malik Shabazz, founder and president of Black Lawyers for Justice (BLFJ) in Washington, D.C., planned rallies in Baltimore amid many locally organized events during the days following the death of Freddie Gray. One BLFJ event erupted in violence, as crowds dispersed at the end of a march on April 25; Shabazz was heckled to… Read More

The Baltimore Jewish Times took top honors at the MDDC Press Association’s Editorial Awards luncheon held May 1 at the BWI Westin hotel in Linthicum. Beating out such titles as The Washington Post and The Baltimore Sun, the JT’s editor-in-chief, Joshua Runyan, along with digital media editor Melissa Gerr and copy editor Michael Marlow won… Read More

An apparent anti-Semitic and racist flier that featured manipulated images of two African-American county executives was distributed Monday evening at a Prince George’s County budget hearing. The flier, titled “From Baltimore to Jerusalem It’s the Same Game,” invokes several anti-Semitic tropes denigrating U.S. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-District 8), who is not Jewish, and U.S…. Read More

The chorus of 30 men engaged in their morning prayer rituals filled the bottom floor room at Ohr Hamizrach Congregation Sephardic Center just before 7 a.m. on a Monday. The men, some of whom have been there since 5 a.m. to study Talmud, joined together for the Torah service around 7:30 a.m., when a Torah… Read More

Following the announcement on May 1 from Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby that six police officers were charged in the death of Sandtown resident Freddie Gray, downtown streets were host to several demonstrations and rallies, each demanding a follow-through of justice and calling for calm and peace to return to a fractured city. About… Read More

Rep. Donna Edwards was the first to take a direct swipe at her main Democratic rival for the open seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Barbara Mikulski. Speaking Sunday at a candidates forum in Rockville hosted by the Maryland chapter of the National Organization for Women, the Prince George’s County Democrat and District 4 congressional… Read More